Body Language
by heartforhumanity845
Summary: After pissing off Keith Shadis, Annie Leonhardt is assigned to permanent watch duty as punishment. Desperate to combat the boredom, she heeds the advice of Armin and turns to the library. What she finds there opens up an entire new world for her. Aruani one-shot, possible two-shot. Rated T for suggestive material and slight language.


**Body Language**

"Leonhardt! What on earth do you think you're doing?"

In all truth, she should have foreseen Keith Shadis' anger from the moment she had decided her plan of action. The entire atmosphere of wrestling trainees hitting the dirt and struggling to dominate one another seemed quite a humorous display for someone of her level of skill. She had proven time and time again that she was not a force to trifle with, despite her fellow cadets not taking heed to such warning.

Indeed, it was a pity. Half of them would be dead in the end anyways. She never could truly wrap her head around the idea of sacrificing yourself in such a manner. What was the point? For glory? Bullshit. She could think of at least three alternatives for such a coveted respect. For honor? Again, more sensible ways to accomplish it. What good was any of those things if you were dead?

Her pale blue gaze lifted to meet the darkened sockets of her instructor. His back was rigid and his arms firmly clasped behind his back in a threatening manner. Any other fool would have cowered at the sight. She did not.

"It is required that you participate in hand-to-hand combat." Shadis began. "I realize you think that you're hot shit, but out here everyone is on the same playing field. No special treatment."

She had listened to only half of what he was saying, her eyes drifting along the horizon behind him. To say she was less than enthralled in his empty words would be an understatement. This, however, only pissed him off more.

"Alright, Leonhardt. That's it." He growled, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her closer to where the remaining Cadets roughhoused about. Normally, she would have flawlessly broken his forearm in two movements but chose against it. There was no need to affirm her obvious power over the man in such a setting.

"Cadets! Listen up!" He barked. The fighting and wrestling immediately ceased, with every pair of eyes landing on him and the young teen. Keith Shadis glared at them. "You need not worry about going in pairs for watch duty anymore, because Cadet Leonhardt here is going to be there. Every night, without fail." He hollered while simultaneously shooting a sideways look at her.

Was he serious? Was that _really_ all he could squander up as punishment for her insubordination? It was enough to almost make her laugh. _Almost._

The teen girl looked around at the reactions from her fellow cadets, finding a majority of neutral or relieved expressions across their faces. A bald cadet in particular was snickering while trying his best to conceal it from view. She would take care of him later.

"Resume." Shadis ordered, then glared to her once more.

"Since you think you are so above the rest of us, I am also sure that you will not have any objection to heading to the watch tower now." He hissed. She just blinked, lowering her gaze to her own eye level and starting off in the direction of the tower.

These people were bigger fools than she could have ever imagined.

 **11:56 p.m.**

Annie Leonhardt was no lady.

She found it deplorable that there were females amongst her barracks that believed in such things as manners and beauty products. That there should ever be a care in the world about what their hair looked like. Or whether or not the worthless pigs called boys were giving them so much as a sideways glance. To her, the only way to get respect was to earn it. Strangers were no exception, and an individual that has scorned someone was _definitely_ an ill fit for such a courtesy.

Even now, she watched as a few females huddled below in a fit of giggles. They waved the boys goodnight when they had exited the showering area. Pathetic. It was as if they could not live without the prospect of a man's approval.

She heard the door to the main room of the tower open. Her back was turned to the opening, facing the large window in front of her with her feet kicked up on the railing. Her watch partner for the evening had just returned from showering herself.

"Sorry, took longer than I expected to." Christa Lenz hurriedly apologized to her fellow blonde. Her timid voice was but a squeak in the vast space, and Annie did not even look in her direction. The girl was a prime example of the type she had just been thinking about.

At the empty sound of no reply, Christa flashed a tight smile and took up the chair perpendicular to the stoic teen.

The crickets and cicadas outside emitted a cacophonous sound as the depths of night wore on. Light was barely offered for them, save the moon that was at half face. Torches were lit on the corners of each building of sleeping quarters, but the amber flickers only offered enough for the surrounding circumference of approximately three feet. Hardly enough to spot a soldier escapee if the need arose. Christa was snoring in the corner, her head hung backwards over the back of the chair and her arm dangling off the side in a slump. Annie rolled her eyes.

Minutes turned into hours until it was well past two in the morning. Her eyelids had become heavy, her neck beginning to bend forward at her head's insistence. Throwing herself back up into the sitting position, she cursed herself in her own mind. This was easy. There was nothing to do except sit and watch. How was it possibly getting the best of her?

She promptly stood up and took a turn about the room. Eyeing her slumbering partner, she took to writing in the provided notebook of the night's activities. She had seen one cadet leave to go to the showers again around half past midnight, though she could only imagine what he was up to. The male sex was not outside the realm of her understanding, though she disposed of such childish information as if it was not meant for anyone past grade school.

Even with the added movement, Annie found herself being hopelessly dragged into the depths of slumber. She gritted her teeth and fisted her current piece of paper in her hand. Taking the liberty to pitch the wad into a wastebasket, she grunted in frustration.

 **The following morning**

Annie had taken her usual spot in the far corner of the dining hall, her eyelids droopy from the absolutely agonizing night. She had hoped nobody saw her current state but her worries soon escalated to reality with the appearance of a remark.

"Whoa, Annie. You look _tired._ " One cadet had dared to remark from directly behind her. She whirled around with icy daggers in her eyes and he reeled back almost instinctually. The teen had a multi-colored undercut for a hairstyle and stood at a normal height for a boy his age. A spark of mischief was in his eyes, and she struggled to produce a name to match him.

"Hey Jean!" called another boy, this one with a slicked and parted hairstyle and freckles sprinkled across his cheeks. "Come sit with us!"

Oh, that was right. Jean Kirschtein. The teen who had started a load of shit with that Jaeger kid just a few days ago for the millionth time in a row. She took it upon herself to label him in caution as a fool and hot-headed. Perhaps that is why they sparred so frequently. They were each other's equal, as far as anyone with eyes and a working brain could tell.

Reverting back to her issue at hand, she had begun to wonder what she could possibly do to keep awake. She was far beyond begging to be exempt from Shadis. Begging was not in her blood. Weakness was not in her blood. She had always been an "adapt and overcome" individual. This small inconvenience was but a grain of sand. She _would_ overcome it.

But how?

 **4:33 p.m.**

Along the dirt track of the physical fitness route the cadets jogged. Some were resolute and showed no indications of slowing down, while others wheezed and sweat as if they were on the verge of death. As one would suspect, Annie Leonhardt was in the former category.

She had to admit she had got a good heartrate going, and her short but lean legs carried her past the majority of her peers. Her platinum locks were knotted up in a loose ponytail, her bangs sticking to her forehead from the accumulating sweat along her hairline.

Annie soon came to a stretch of the track that wound up and around the side of a nearby hill. Onward she drove, digging her heels deeper into the dirt and kicking it up behind her. The trees provided little comfort from the beaming sun, and she found herself searching for a shady spot to rest. Though they were not being timed, she knew that Keith Shadis and the others had a certain amount of time set aside as leeway for everyone to return in a timely manner. She soon spotted a particularly darker spot of shade just a few hundred feet ahead and planned to make use of it. Though as she neared, the audible sound of pained wheezing and coughing could be heard. Her eyebrow peaked in interest.

Rounding the tree's trunk, she came face to face with a pair of eyes that she was not familiar with. They were blue as hers were, but this was indeed a completely more mesmerizing hue. The only blue she could even compare it to was the sky, though even then it didn't give them its rightful comparison. The eyes seemed alarmed, almost terrified at her appearance. She realized that she had been staring entirely too long as the person of which the eyes belonged to stammered.

"A-Annie Leonhardt?" He said, still gasping to catch his breath. She stared back at him and began to instantly regret having ever stopped.

This boy was that Jaeger fellow's friend. Many a time had she seen him babbling incessantly to his hot-headed companion about the days where they would all be back home in Shiganshina District. She found it amusing if anything else. He had such high hopes for a world so damning. It was almost sickening to her.

Still, she stared at him as if seeing him for the first time. There was absolutely nothing flawed that she could find about him. There was no foreboding presence about him, nor a vicious one. He had a gentle look to his boy-ish features. He was as simple in nature as they came. It was truly odd though, because in the almost two years of their training together already, his name was the only thing that stuck permanently in her mind.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" He asked. Another long moment of silence before she spoke.

"Rocky stretch of road ahead. Can you handle it?" She questioned in a condescending fashion. The boy's eyes widened. He had never heard her speak before. It was endearing.

"U-um, I'll be fine." He foolishly lied to her.

"Armin." She stated. This floored him as her eyes locked on his. "You'll do nothing for yourself by creating false statements."

Before the boy could register what she had just said, she took off again at a speed he could only dream to achieve. His eyes remained wide as she disappeared around the bend.

All the while, she was cursing herself again and again in her conscience. She had broken her own code of retaining silence from as many cadets as possible. And to whom? The weakest one of them all. Armin Arlert.

Day after day, Annie spent the nights fighting her own tired conscience. It had become tedious, with her only change being the person who had been assigned on watch with her that night.

She needed something else. Something to engage her frequently without the inconvenience of human interaction. There had to be _something._

 **Two weeks later**

"Hey, Annie. Are you coming?" The pig-tailed girl called out as the group of females made for the lake with towels in tow. Most of them were dressed in a thin white shirt and short shorts. Annie wore her usual hoodie and tan pants. She looked up at the brood with disdain and said nothing. As usual, her icy stare put across her thoughts perfectly and the girls took the hint, scampering off without another word.

"Sheesh, why is she such a killjoy?" Annie heard one of them question as the door slammed shut. The blonde blinked a few moments, then returned to her task of polishing her boots. Though she cared little for the approval of others, she was a firm believer that a soldier was only as good as his uniform and equipment.

The only other inhabitants of the barracks were Potato Girl, who was completely conked out in her own bunk, and that Ackerman girl who was busy repping sit-ups off the side of the bed. Both made the stoic girl's lip curl in disenchantment. Against her better judgement, she chose to take a turn about the barracks outside.

Stepping out into the almost perfect temperature, the young blonde began her trek along the sides of rows upon rows of barracks. Their plain brown slats were as boring as one could get in the design of a structure. She shoved her hands into the pouch of her hoodie, her eyes glancing around to take in the rest of the view. From the watch tower, the angle was different. Everything seemed so far away, so distant. Now, it seemed, that everything had come to life in detail.

Annie had become so entranced in the view that she neglected to notice what was coming for her, and in an instant she was knocked off balance as she ran into someone from the opposite direction.

With a grunt, Armin Arlert fell back straight onto his rump, putting a hand to the affected area on his head where he had collided with her. Annie's eyes widened as he looked up to her.

"A-Annie…..sorry….I didn't realize you were going to be walking here…." He stammered to apologize, collecting what he had been carrying in his arms up off the ground and scrambling to his feet. In curiosity, she tilted her head as the objects, which happened to be three quite large books. She was about to inquire after them, but Armin beat her to the next question.

"How's watch treating you? I heard from Jean the other night that it's really boring…" He questioned. Annie stared at him. Why was he after her business? In a flare of temper, she spoke.

"Are you following me?" She asked, though she had absolutely no evidence to back up the claim. It was simply to throw him off guard, though she had figured out quite early on that it was a simple task to achieve. His face fell to shock and he shook his head vehemently.

"What? N-no! I just….I just happen to run into you a lot, I guess." Annie heard his explanation only sparingly, still eyeing the books wrapped tightly in his arms. After a moment, she pointed to them.

"What are those about?" She quizzed him. The boy looked down for a moment before blushing.

"U-um, stuff." He said. "Cool stuff. Like land-navigation and star mapping." He said. Her eyes flickered with amusement.

"That's _fun_ to you?" She asked, bewildered that such subjects would be of any interest to anyone. Though, as she thought about it, if there _was_ someone who would be interested in them, it would definitely be the bookworm standing sheepishly in front of her.

"W-well…..yes. They're useful, therefore I think it's cool." Armin defended his passions to the stone-faced blonde girl. She snorted.

"How's star-mapping going to help you win a battle?" She questioned, once again emitting a condescending tone.

"Maybe it won't help the _battle_ , but it'll help if there's ever a chance of getting lost in an unknown territory. Same with land navigation." He said.

Annie Leonhardt watched him speak with a somewhat interested gleam to her eyes. This boy was something else. Usually, the opposite sex would just cower away at her presence or fight to keep away. Armin did neither. Though he was visibly uncomfortable at their interaction, she noted how he had not inched back even a centimeter from her.

"Hey!" His abrupt interjection made her gaze snap back to his. Blue clashed with blue. "Maybe _that's_ what you could do to entertain yourself! Books are full of cool information, I'm sure there's something _you'd_ enjoy!"

"Are you saying that I can't entertain myself?" Annie snapped back, shifting into a more defensive stance. Armin immediately backed down on his cheerful approach.

"No! I just….I wanted to-!"

"With all due respect, _Armin_ , if all books are full of 'cool info' like the ones you have just described, I think I'll pass." She stated coolly, starting around him and leaving him a flustered mess. He looked back to her and sighed, turning about to continue on his way without so much as a goodbye.

 _Stupid weakling. What does he take me for? A nerd like him?_

Her thoughts were more jagged than she could have imagined as she stormed back to the barracks. She was just about to grab for the door when something out of the corner of her eye made her look up.

It was that infuriating boy, his blonde bob of a haircut shining in the sun as he climbed the steps to the library. She watched him for a moment, then the wheels began to turn about in her head. Before she knew it, her body was starting forward in its direction.

What on earth could she possibly have to lose?

 **In the library**

Everything she came across seemed ridiculous. Was there nothing of substantial content within reach? Endlessly she scanned row after row of books, looking upon hundreds of titles before she was on the verge of giving up.

Other soldiers were scattered throughout the facility quietly, searching for their own sources of entertainment amongst the vast array of leather-bound pages. How they looked so content in doing so was beyond her. She could barely contain her frustration as she came to the last row of novels. If she could not find her saving grace in this aisle, she would retreat back to the barracks and call it a night. Viciously, she glanced over title after title in a fevered search.

One title made her pause for a moment.

 _The Art of Body Language._

Carefully, she grabbed at its spine and slid it from its spot, turning it over in her hands and looking to synopsis. It peaked her interest slightly, and it was only because she had never given the idea any thought. While she was pretty good at reading people, there was something about certain situations that had her wishing she knew what the other was thinking.

 _In this book, you will learn everything that there is to know of a person's unspoken language. Though reading their body language may not be 100% foolproof in indicating their thoughts or feelings, this book will guide you through the basics and the tricks of the trade so that you will be all the more in tune to what a person could possibly be thinking, and using it to your advantage._

That seemed convincing. If anything, she could use it for detecting a person's intentions in a fight, making her all the deadlier to deal with. She decided to give it a shot.

"Alrighty, will that be everything for you today, miss?" An all-too-cheerful cadet piped from behind the checkout counter. Without another word the blonde exited the building, leaving the girl to watch her in confusion.

That night, Annie took her usual spot on the far corner of the room. She quietly untucked the book from under her arm and was beginning to open it when the abrupt slamming open of the door made her snap it back behind her out of view.

"I can't believe this. I wasn't supposed to have watch until next week. That idiot Connie is going to pay for this."

Annie watched Eren steam in frustration as he took up the opposite side of the room. His piercing green eyes glared up at her, but he said nothing as she stared back with an equal amount of irritation. He busied himself with sharpening his blades for tomorrow's target practice and cautiously the blonde teen turned about until her back was to him. She reproduced the book into her view, and as quietly as she could attempt, the pages were open to her. She skimmed through the contents.

 _An Introduction_ _ **Pg. 1**_

 _The Basics_ _ **Pg. 5**_

 _Differences_ _ **Pg. 28**_

 _Male vs. Female_ _ **Pg. 52**_

 _In a conversation_ _ **Pg. 98**_

 _In a fight_ _ **Pg. 145**_

 _Owning that Interview_ _ **Pg. 180**_

 _Landing that Date_ _ **Pg. 245**_

 _Special Tricks_ _ **Pg. 456**_

 _Closing Information_ _ **Pg. 560**_

Seemed simple enough. She immediately flipped to page thirty two and began reading. Though within moments she realized that there were key words and lingos that she did not recognize. Frustrated, she flipped back to chapter 1 and began from scratch.

The night wore on and by the time the sun began to peek its head over the horizon, she had made quite a dent in Chapter 4. Hearing a yawn, she looked up and watched as Eren stretched and scratched at his back. The teen looked at her.

"I'll bring breakfast back for both of us. What do you want?" He asked. Annie continued to watch him.

 _Posture is slackened, indicating comfort in talking._

She blinked several times. What was _that?_

"Uh…Annie?"

She realized how long she had been staring at him. She bashfully turned away.

"Nothing. I'll be fine." She mumbled. Eren shrugged, choosing not to argue with her and exiting the room.

What the hell just happened? Was she really starting to recall exact wording now? It seems the knowledge had more than sufficiently lodged itself in the inner coils of her brain. Without so much as another thought, she stood up and walked out, carrying the book underneath her arm.

The dining hall was a field day for her as she watched everyone interact. Starting with an easy target, she spotted Eren across the way with Mikasa.

Mikasa's posture was stiff and leaned slightly towards Eren, which meant she had a high interest in what he had to say. Eren's was slackened but still leaning in, which indicated that he was interested but unsure about where to take the interest.

Connie, Sasha, Jean, and Marco sat across from them, all of them laughing at Connie's antics. Annie watched all of their smiles, and noticed how Jean's eyes did not crinkle at his jokes. A surefire sign that Jean was forcing his amusement across his face. However, the moment Marco interjected with his own attempt at humor, Annie observed the crinkle in the corners. _Now_ he was being genuine.

This was almost too easy. It was as if she had opened to a whole new world of communication. She froze as a thought came to mind. She was enjoying it. Legitimately enjoying picking out what everyone was thinking without them even knowing it. It gave her an edge, an advantage as the book had stated. It made her all the more a threat, and she decided in that moment that she wanted to know more.

Exiting the dining hall, she made a beeline for the barracks and dug under her pillow for the book. Yanking it from its hiding spot, she nestled into her bunk to pick up where she had left off. She breezed through the next couple of chapters, and it was with newfound surprise that the title to the next section faced her.

 _Landing that Date._

As emphasized before, Annie Leonhardt did not care for the opposite sex. It wasn't that she preferred girls, it was just that that was a realm of which she had never had any interest. Romance was about as foreign a concept to her as beauty products were, and it could not possibly be useful in a fight or on the battlefield. Her entire life revolved around being a good warrior, a good soldier. She had no time for petty wants such as her own desires. However strong they may have been at times.

Still, the heading beckoned her to dive in. To take a chance, learn something entirely new. Before she knew it, she was indeed continuing into its paragraphs and lists, soaking in the subject like a strange sponge.

Once finished, the light was fading from the world. In alarm, she checked the wall clock and realized that she had five minutes to be up at the watch tower. Jerking herself into somewhere between neutrality and panic, she grabbed her things and made straight for the towering structure.

Upon bursting in, she realized that she had still made it before her watch partner, though who it would be remained a big question in her mind. Shadis had made the list and kept it in his office, not telling her who would be next until the day of their duty. Quite a dick move.

Regardless, she settled into her usual spot and took out the book to continue reading. She had yet to finish it, and absolutely nothing was going to keep her from diving head first into its pages tonight.

Or at least, so she thought.

About three minutes later, the door creaked open. Her eyes lifted lazily at first, wondering who would be stuck with her horrible company tonight. If it was Connie, she would make his life a living hell for the next eight hours.

To her surprise, a blonde boy poked his head in bashfully and her heartrate quickened.

Armin shot a nervous smile at her, his own novel clasped in his hand.

"Sorry I'm late. I didn't realize that I had duty tonight until Eren told me at dinner." Armin quickly said to try and cover himself. Annie said nothing, and she watched as his eyes spotted her book in her lap and his face brightened.

"Hey! You took my advice!" He bubbled. Immediately she snatched it out of view, shooting him a glare.

"Mind your own business." She snapped. She watched his expression falter slightly, but he just turned and sat down, opening up his own to the page he had left off on.

Annie continued to watch him for a long moment. He seemed pretty content from what she could tell. Armin Arlert was not one to show very many negative connotations, and the girl had yet to see him angry or upset. Perhaps it was just not in him.

A devious idea snaked its way into her mind.

 _No. There's no way. He'd clamp up like an oyster._

She had ventured into unsettling territory at how long she stared at him, and before too long Armin took notice. His crystal blue eyes lifted and jumped back as he met her icy blue ones.

"Umm…Annie? Is….is everything okay?" He questioned. Annie said nothing for a moment as she drank in his demeanor.

Posture? Straight, but not completely stiffened. Eyes? Searching her face in confusion. Feet? Both pointed indefinitely in her direction. Arms? Resting comfortably at his sides.

He showed all the normal signs of a content human being in a conversation. A good sign, but she wanted to test the waters. She began with just a simple question, because she knew how rare her words were to him.

"Everything's fine. Do you always worry about people like this?" She answered. She immediately noticed him slouch and his face flush. His hands moved to a clasped position.

"N-no….I just didn't want you…upset tonight, that's all."

His way of speaking would have been insufficient on his own, but what he did not say he made up for in his movements. Annie took observation of his nervous scratch to the back of his head, the shift of his feet to where they moved closer to him but remained pointed her way. In her mind, she smirked triumphantly.

"And why would you not want me to be upset?" She took special care to not allow her expression to fall in the slightest, giving off the impression to him that she was as stoic as ever. Her arms crossed and her legs pressed together as she leaned against the back of the chair and stared at him.

"Well….because I know how bad you can get when you're mad and I—"

"Are you insinuating that I can't control myself?" She said, only half serious in her sudden accusation. She watched his posture completely collapse at that, one foot shifting away from her.

"Of course not! I know you can, it's just that you come off a bit strong sometimes." The fact that he had managed to utter an entire statement without stammering surprised her. Perhaps he was gaining confidence the more he spoke to her. She decided to step it up a bit.

She lifted herself from the chair, straightening her back and stepping a few feet closer to him. Resting her hands palms-down on the table between them, she leaned into him and mustered up a glare.

"From what I can tell, _you_ just need to grow a backbone and take it like a man." She hissed quietly. That really made his stance retreat into discomfort. She found herself feeling something else at the sight of his squirming underneath her gaze. Something unrecognizable. It burned in her core like a small flame to a furnace, and at any point it could ignite.

"Please, Annie….I don't want to fight. Let's just drop it." Armin begged. Annie continued to watch him with a steely gaze, though deep within her psyche she felt something entirely different.

It was as if she was seeing him for the first time. Everything he did told her something. The subtle twists of his face. The heaving of his chest. The flush on his skin. It was only then that she realized that she had inched herself even closer to him in the time it took for them to exchange the last two statements.

The feeling that had presented itself during their entire conversation roared into an unbearable senesation, and with frustration her mind sifted through her memories in search of a name. The name to this fresh hell that hung in the air between them.

All at once, she was at a loss. She had no idea how to move forward from here. She had advanced entirely too close, and with newfound surprise she realized that she could feel his quickened puffs of air against her face and neck. Without thought her eyes lifted to his once more, and her usual stance crashed over her powerfully. She glared at him. She watched something in his eyes flicker. She felt the shift in his body and the unbeknownst call.

There it was.

"Annie…" Armin began, but before anything else could possibly happen, he felt the insatiable crash of her surprisingly soft lips against his. He choked back a scream as her lips worked their way on his, and he was completely thrown for a loop. She withdrew as quickly as she had come, and the two stared at one another for a long moment. He panted relentlessly, though nothing truly physical had really happened. His eyes were wide open and she looked back at him with that same neutral expression, her eyelids drooped to a condescending look.

"Wh-what…." He mumbled but her leaning into him once more shut him up right quick.

"You want to know why I did that?" She asked in a tone so low it was almost threatening. He wordlessly nodded and she lowered her gaze to the ground. For the first time since he had known her, he could have sworn she looked…..bashful?

"Because you asked me to." She explained. Armin's eyebrow arched in confusion.

"What? No, I didn't." He argued. Annie jerked her head in the direction of the discarded book upon her own chair across the room.

"That book I'm reading. It's on how to read body language." She declared. A look of realization began to streak across his features, and his face grew hot as she neared him again. She bent over to look him dead in the eyes. He saw something in her eyes dance and flash about, and he was speechless against this blonde vixen. He reminded himself that they were entirely alone for the next several hours, which only made his heartrate jump to dangerous heights as her gaze seemed to peer right into his soul.

She enjoyed this. She enjoyed watching him become flustered at her expense. Though it did nothing to empower her like her normal search from someone would warrant, it provided something else for her. Something far more personal, a feat that nobody besides her own father could give her.

It made her feel loved. Appreciated. She liked the attention his gaze emitted. She had fought for so long to stay in the shadows….it felt glorious to step into the light. Even if it was just for him. In fact, she preferred it that way. His eyes did not leave hers, and she loved him for it.

Ah. That was it. That was the name of the insatiable emotion that gnawed at her insides.

But was it really love? She thought back to all their interactions. It wasn't until now that she realized how incredibly kind he had been to her. The things he had aided her with on training exercises, though she had never thanked him. The words he had said about her amongst his peers, though he had no idea she was within earshot. The times he would go out of his way to say good morning and good night to her, though she never said it back.

The signs had been there all along. She mentally kicked herself for having to solicit the aid of a book to nudge her into realizing it. Turning her attention back to the boy beneath her, she leaned in even closer until their noses were all but barely touching.

"And do you know what you're telling me now?" She mumbled softly. Armin's heart continued to pound, and he shook his head. She placed light brushes of fingers against his cheek, making his breathing hitch.

"…that you liked it."

All at once, everything set into motion. Her weight was on top of him and pulled him out of his chair into a heap on the floor. Smacks of lips and heavy breathing rung out into the silence of the watch room as the two collaborated passionately. A few times they had rolled each other over until it was ultimately Annie on top and Armin pinned beneath. She looked down at him in almost a predatory manner. Her eyes had long since been set ablaze into blue flames amidst the orbs, and the two blondes observed their current position with quite a powerful interest.

Annie soaked in the feeling of Armin's hands clamped around the curve of her hips. Leaning down, she rested her forehead on his to catch her breath. Something she was surprised at, considering her unusually high tolerance for heated activity. Though, in all fairness, _this_ type of activity was fresh and new to her.

"Annie…" came Armin's soft voice again. "I can't believe…." A finger was placed to his lips and he looked into her fiery gaze that peered up at him through a curtain of platinum blonde.

"You don't have to say a word. I can see it all over you." She muttered in certainty at her newfound gift. He gently wrapped his hand around hers, which made her look up at him completely. It was her turn to be taken aback.

"But I want to."

He just held her hand for a moment, feeling the softness of her pale skin. He had believed up until that point that they would have been extremely calloused due to her fighting style. He was more than pleased to have found out otherwise.

"I just can't believe…..you like me too…." He finally managed to utter. Annie looked back at him and he could have sworn he saw a hint of blush creep across her cheekbones. However, she once again allowed her bangs to cover much of her face, blocking him from searching for it any further.

"I didn't realize it until…." She began, but found that she couldn't bring herself to admit her fault. Up until this point, she had assumed that Armin saw her as flawless, and it pained her to even think that he could look on her in any other way. If he had only known the truth…..she was convinced he wouldn't have such a tender gaze as he did now. She pursed her lips. "…..nevermind."

Fingers brushed her bangs aside, and she dared herself to look at him again. The teen looked at her in a way that she had only heard about in a few sappy novels when she was a kid, or from word of mouth of the lovesick teenagers she observed in her village. Back then, it was repulsing. Now…..not so much.

"Annie…" The fifth time he had uttered her name that evening was the gentlest it had ever been, and before she could stop herself, she returned the gesture.

"Armin…" She mumbled, and that was the tipping point for him. She rarely called him by name, and he took it as invitation to continue with what they were doing.

Before another syllable was uttered, they were on each other again with heated emotion. Sucking and nipping at each other's tender skin and breathing heavily to accommodate the change in activity. Hands found the bare ripples of his chest and he choked back a moan, her spindly fingers searching every inch of him underneath his shirt. He was completely flushed red and his breath panted in her ear. She paid it no mind as she grazed her nails along his pectoral, eliciting a hiss of agreement from the boy. She found the crook of his neck and latched on. His wanton gasps of need continued to echo throughout the room.

Subsequently, Armin had managed to snake his arm under Annie's button-up shirt and was generously cupping his hand to the padded fabric of her bra. A daring move indeed, but a supportive grip of her own hand on the wrist buried in the cotton material confirmed it for him. He was doing surprisingly well for a young man who had never seen the type of action he was experiencing now.

Annie's tongue pooled against his skin and he hissed again, having had enough of her teasing antics to last a lifetime. In a flash he had flipped her onto her back and she gasped, having no time to react as he was on her again, his hands firmly pinning her wrists to the floor. She had absolutely no idea he had it in him. But there he was, rendering her powerless against his touch.

Something poked against her inner thigh. Glancing downwards, her face took on an entirely new shade of red. She pulled her lips away from his just enough to utter his name again.

"Armin…" She mumbled. The boy pulled away to observe where she had her attention, and one glance downwards sent him into a frenzy of apologies.

"Annie, I am so sorry. I-AUGH!" He cried out as she had gently brushed a knee up against it. He looked back into her eyes to spot a dangerous amount of sultry mischief in them. His entire body trembled as she continued to stroke it again and again with her lower leg, making his back arch upwards in pleasure. His eyes darkened with the same desire set forth in hers, and Annie mentally prepared herself for what could possibly come next. Her sown prodding and teasing had been successful up until this point, and it was time to immerse herself in her reward.

Heavy footsteps in the stairwell echoed nearby just past the door.

In a flash, Armin had stood up and helped Annie to her feet, the girl quickly straightening out her top and moving across the room to make it appear as if she hadn't just been all over her fellow Cadet. In a rush, Keith Shadis entered the room and glared at them both.

"I see you both have made it up here for the night." He cracked his knuckles and neck before continuing. "I have come to inform you that first formation will now take place at 5:30 tomorrow morning, so your watch duties will end early for tomorrow." He glanced between them both again. "Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir!" They both cried, offering a salute. Shadis' expression dropped to one of surprise as he noticed Annie giving a flawless salute.

"Well, Cadet Leonhardt. I'm glad to see you finally showing a bit of respect." He jabbed viciously before giving one last look to both of them. "That will be all."

He left as quickly as he had stormed in, with the door slamming behind him and leaving the two teenagers alone once again.

Armin and Annie looked to one another sheepishly, beginning to realize how close their instructor had been to catching them in the act. The two returned to their spots across the room and sat in silence for the rest of their time together. The momentum was gone. At least for the time being.

5:15 a.m. rolled around and the two cadets prepared for their descent from the tower to make it to formation on time. Annie had almost made it to the door when Armin's voice stopped her for a moment.

"Um, Annie?"

She turned to look at him and he blushed.

"D-do you think that….when you're done with it… _I_ could have a look at the book?" He questioned. What she did next completely floored him once more. He watched as the smallest hint of a smile graced her lips.

"In due time." She mumbled, turning away and beginning her trek down the stairs. Armin hurried after her and the two made their way back to their fellow comrades, pushing their eventful evening to the back of their minds until situation allowed them to open up once more. And perhaps this time, they would not be interrupted.

 **Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **Finally! My first romance fic for this fandom is done! However, I originally planned to have this as a one-shot but now I'm contemplating making it a two-shot. Let me know what you all think in the review section, I'm completely torn on whether to leave it hanging or make a second chapter. Rating is also up in the air for right now if I choose to write another chapter, but for right now it is just T.**

 **Please tell me what you'd like in the review section! I hope you enjoyed this and there are plenty more to come!**

 **Sincerely,**

 **Heartforhumanity845**


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